What If the School Year Didn’t Go as Planned?

Sue Patterson

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Maybe this year didn't go as you envisioned.
Maybe your big plans fizzled.

Maybe your kids resisted.

Maybe life just... got in the way.

In this episode, I’m sharing:

How to move forward if the year felt like a flop
Creative and meaningful ways to celebrate anyway
What to do if this is your last homeschooling year ever
Plus, how to make those end-of-year progress reports feel a whole lot easier

Whether you’re a relaxed homeschooler or unschooler—or even just curious about unschooling—this is for you.

Time to Wrap Up...

It’s May. And for many of us, this season carries a sort of weight.
End-of-year tests. Progress reports. Graduation ceremonies. Closure.

But what if you don’t feel closure?
What if, instead, you’re looking at the year wondering:

“Where did the time go?”
“Why didn’t we finish what we started?”
“Did they even learn anything??”

That heavy feeling? You’re not alone in it.

Maybe you started the year with vision boards and curriculum plans and color-coded schedules.
Maybe your kids had other ideas. Or maybe your energy faded. Or maybe both.

Now, all you feel is guilt, disappointment, or resentment.

Let’s put a stop to that spiral right now.

You’re not trying to recreate school at home — you’re trying to create an environment where your child actually enjoys learning.
And that’s not easy. Especially if all the tools you were handed don’t seem to work anymore.

So first up?

💡 Let’s Call It: This Year Is Done.

You don’t need to wait for some bureaucratic marker to tell you it’s “over.”
You are the teacher. The principal. The superintendent.
You get to say when it’s a wrap.

“4th grade? Finished.”
“10th grade? Complete.”

Done doesn’t mean failure.
It means you’re ready to move forward — and do things differently.

🎉 Let’s Plan a Celebration (Even If It Was a Messy Year)

If you want closure, don’t make it about tests or finished textbooks.

Make it about connection and reflection.

Have a little party. Really!

🟡 Play music your kids love - get them in on creating a playlist for favorites this year.
🟡 Plan a feast together - or just make sure to include everyone’s favorites!
🟡 Look through photos or journal entries from the year — where did you go? What moments made you laugh?
🟡 Talk about what they are proud of - help them learn to identify their OWN strengths! And show them that you notice them too
🟡 Celebrate the weird stuff — the Minecraft builds, the inside jokes, the deep dives into obscure topics. You know what’s one of those unschooling secrets? This is often where the real learning is hiding. And this is the stuff that stays with them!

I have a free PDF to help with this — it includes reflection prompts and checklist ideas to keep it easy and lighthearted. And if you’re in my membership group, hop into the Circle and find the full collection of party ideas waiting for you.

Let’s show our kids that celebrating progress doesn’t require a gold star from someone else.
It doesn’t have to be about grades or approval.
Let’s help them see their own accomplishments — and feel proud of who they are becoming.

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Send me the Free PDF!

📝 Need to Submit a Progress Report?

I’ve got something for you here too — especially if you’re feeling stuck.

Use this mindset shift:

Don’t ask, “What did we teach this year?”

Ask, “What did we live through this year — and what did we learn from it?”

As you look through your calendar, photos, or even your camera roll, start connecting those moments to traditional subjects:

📚 Language Arts — Did your kids tell stories? Watch movies and talk about plot? Listen to podcasts? Write anything down? Count it.

🌍 Social Studies — Did you talk about politics, elections, community events? Did you travel? That’s history, geography, and civics.

🔬 Science — Did they visit nature centers, ask why something worked the way it did, explore animals or weather or space or plants?

➕ Math — Gas prices, video game stats, budgeting, recipes, speed and distance while traveling — these all build math fluency.

🎨 Fine Arts — Drawing, crafting, creating digital designs, editing videos — it’s ALL creative expression.

Every conversation, every experience counts.

And if your state requires formal documentation, grab your free progress report template (it’s from my new Transcript Course) and match your real life to their language.
You can literally copy their standards from the Department of Ed website and align your child’s experiences to them. I walk you through how to do this.

And if this is your very last year — maybe you’re graduating a teen, or closing this chapter altogether — take a breath.

You did something powerful. You gave your child freedom, space, and trust. That’s worth honoring.

Ready for your next step?